


Convincing

by bornforwar_archivist



Category: Xena: Warrior Princess
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-31
Updated: 2006-12-31
Packaged: 2018-11-13 03:25:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11176002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bornforwar_archivist/pseuds/bornforwar_archivist
Summary: By LissiaTo win Xena's heart and prove his love, a mortal Ares must convince Eve that his teachings were wrong. At the same time Gabrielle is trying to convince Virgil that Eve isn't all that bad.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Delenn, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Born For War](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Born_For_War), which closed in 2015. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in March 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Born For War collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/bornforwar).
> 
> Disclaimers: 
> 
> Characters aren’t mine, story is. Just for fun, no profit involved. No subtext(shocked?) Takes place after Motherhood. The basics focus around X/A, but there are others in there. Send all comments and constructive criticism Thanks!! 
> 
> Summery: 
> 
> To win Xena’s heart and prove his love, a mortal Ares must convince Eve that his teachings were wrong. At the same time Gabrielle is trying to convince Virgil that Eve isn’t all that bad. Rating-PG

Xena and Gabrielle watched as Eve played with the spider. "Xena, we need to get to Athens, that’s where Meg and Virgil are," Gabrielle said. "Yeah, I know. I’ll get Eve, you get the horses," the warrioress ordered. The bard nodded and walked towards the horses. "Eve, let’s go," Xena shouted towards her daughter. The girl turned, then releasing the spider, hurried towards her mother, smiling, "Athens?" She guessed. "Yeah, let’s get going, it’ll take us awhile to get there," Xena answered. "You two going to walk there or ride?" Gabrielle asked sarcastically. Eve sighed and Xena rolled her eyes, then both mounted their horses. That night when they made camp, Eve looked worried, "What’s wrong?" Xena asked, concerned about her daughter. The girl started to cry a bit, then explained, "It’s just I was raised to be the champion of Rome. It’s my life, my past, I can’t just turn away from all that. I know that destroying Eli’s followers was wrong, but I’m still Rome’s champion. Sooner or later, I’ll have to return to that and in the meantime I can’t just stop fighting." Xena sighed and put her arms around her daughter’s shoulders. "I know how you feel and trust me things will get better, just give it some time," she said gently. Eve shook her head, "you have no idea what I’m going through," she said. "Oh, well, ever hear of the Destroyer of Nations?" Xena questioned. "Who hasn’t?" Eve replied sarcastically. Xena laughed gently, then replied, "That was me before Hercules showed me the true path. Then Gabrielle kept me on that path. So you see, I know a bit more about this that you expected, huh?" Eve laughed a bit, "Look, I know that I’ll send up as Rome’s champion, what Ares taught me can’t be all that wrong if it caught you too. But, I’m too tired to talk about it anymore," she said. "Yeah, I guess we better get some sleep, we have a long day of travelling in front of us tomorrow," Xena replied. Looking at her sleeping friend, she added, "She’s going to get more sleep that n us and still be just as cranky as always in the morning." Eve smiled, then both, mother and daughter, fell asleep. When they awoke the next morning Gabrielle was as cranky as ever, just as Xena had predicted which caused both Xena and Eve to burst into a fit of laughter. "What’s so funny?" The bard asked. The warrioress was finally able to stop laughing long enough to reply, "Nothing. Let’s get going." Although Gabrielle was sure she’d missed a joke, she let the subject drop, "We’ll be at in Athens by tonight, right?" She asked, mounting her horse. "Yeah, we should be," Xena answered, "That is, if we hurry." All three women smiled, then urged their horses from a trot to a gallop. They traveled all day, only stopping once for a break, before they reached Athens.


	2. Chapter 2

Xena smiled as she spotted Meg walking with a girl around the age of fifteen. With Eve behind them, Xena and Gabrielle approached their friend. "Wow, Meg, we knew you had a son, but a daughter as well, amazing," Gabrielle said. "Oh, hi guys. Yeah, this is Deanna, you’ll have to come meet the twins, Rena and Adam," Meg replied, pointing towards her house. The two friends smiled, then moved aside to reveal Eve. Meg looked as though she’d just had a knife shoved threw her heart, "You," she breathed, hate in her voice. At the tone, Eve’s eyes filled with tears, "I am so sorry for what I’ve done. At the time, I was blinded by hatred and a lust for power. I know that I can’t change what I’ve done or escape my past, but I want you to know that I am so sorry for killing Joxer, he was a good, brave man, if I could change what I’ve done, I would, but I can’t," she said between sobs. Meg smiled a little, "A long time ago your mother gave me the chance to be more than what I was, to do something good with my life. I want to return that gift by giving you, her daughter, the same chance," she replied. Out of happiness and excitement, Eve rushed over and hugged the older woman, "Thank-you so much," she stated. Meg laughed, "Now, let’s go, I’m sure everyone is hungry after the journey here," she said, ushering them towards her house. "I’ll catch up with you guys in a few minutes," Xena said after spotting the Goddess of Love. "What do you want Aphrodite?" She asked impatiently. "Xena, I did you a favor, now it’s your turn," Dite’ said. "Let me guess, you want me to give Ares a chance to prove his love to me, right?" She guessed sarcastically. Dite’ smiled, "That’s right warrior babe," she replied. Xena sighed, "Oh Aphrodite, it was all a ploy, just a way for him to have a child to carry on his lineage," she said, doubt in her voice. "No, it wasn’t and I want to prove it to you," Ares said, coming out from behind a corner. The warrioress rolled her eyes, "Fine, convince Eve that what you taught her was wrong and then, I’ll believe you," she said. "Cool," he stated. Aphrodite smiled, then left, "Have fun you two, but not too much now," she said, laughing. Ares joined in, but shut-up when Xena shot him a dirty look. "Let’s go, Meg’s waiting," she said, irritated. "And don’t expect a warm welcome from anyone other than me." He didn’t see how she was giving him a warm welcome, until she frenched him, "Thanks for saving Gabrielle and Eve," she said. He smiled and they walked into Meg’s house together.


	3. Chapter 3

Everyone looked in shock as Xena and Ares walked through the door together. Gabrielle shook her head in disapproval, but said nothing. Eve on the other hand was quite open with her opinion, "Mother, what is that scum doing here? You should kill him, he’s evil and you know it!" Xena rose an eyebrow, "He loves me." Eve went into a state of shock, but Gabrielle had heard all this before. Pulling Xena aside, she said, "Xena, you can not be serious. It’s a trick, a way to survive. He doesn’t love you, he doesn’t even care about you....he just wants to live on." Xena shook her head, "You’re wrong, he does care about me. He loves me..I can tell." At that she walked over to where everyone else was standing, "Meg, do you have some rooms for us?" "Yeah, there are four upstairs y’all can use for as long as ya want. Dinner’s gonna be done in an hour about." The next hour was spent getting cleaned up and situated in there rooms. Eve heard a knock on her door and opened it cautiously. "Virgil," she greeted with a warm smile. That smile was not returned though, "Look, just because my mother forgave you doesn’t mean that I will as well. I saw you kill my father, I saw the satisfaction, the happiness in your eyes. and that I can never forgive." That said, he stamped down the stairs to dinner. Hiding her emotions, Eve followed. After eating everyone retired to their rooms for the night. Around midnight a blood-curling scream filled the house. Xena rushed into her daughter’s room, "What’s wrong Eve?" Within minutes both Gabrielle and Ares were in the doorway. the young girl was shaking, "Dreams," she said, "Terrible dreams. I saw my first kill, the death of Joxer and so many others." The warrioress sighed, "It’s over now. That’s not who you are." Eve jerked away from her, "Isn’t it though? I can’t change who I am. I am Rome’s Champion, Destroyer of Innocence, I can never change that." Xena was lost in what to say. Ares then butted in, "You can change Eve and you will, you have to." Xena smiled at him, "He’s right. Now look, it’s late. I want you to go back to sleep." The girl nodded and laid back down. Everyone exited the room. "Thank you," Xena said as Ares walked into his room. He nodded in return, then entered. "What’s going on?" Gabrielle asked, distrustfully. "He knows that I want Eve to change. He’s helping her and I’m helping him. Now, I need you to help Virgil see past Eve’s former self." "Okay, I will. Good night Xena." "Night," she replied, walking into her room. The next morning, Gabrielle got up a bit earlier than usual. She wanted a chance to talk to Virgil alone. Knocking on his door, she said, "Virgil, it’s me, Gabrielle. Can I come in? I want to talk to you." He quickly opened the door, "Sure, what is it?" She walked in and sat down, "Eve, I want to talk to you about Eve." Quite frankly he was irritated by that name being mentioned. "What about her? she murdered my father, I hate her for it, end of discussion." Gabrielle didn’t let his reply discourage her, she knew how delicate things like this could be, "Virgil, she’s trying to change. Can’t you give her a chance?" "That’s just what she wants you to think. She’s evil, Gabrielle and nothing can change that, ever!" ‘New approach,’ she decided, "Look at Xena. She used to be evil. She destroyed village after village. She killed villagers, Centaurs, even Amazons. Yet she changed. She was the Destroyer of Nations, feared and hated by all. Yet, she found redemption. Why can’t Eve?" He thought for a second, "Callisto never found redemption, at least not on her own, she had to have Xena bless her with her ‘light’ for her to find peace. Eve is just her reincarnated self in the appearance of Xena’s daughter, she was given another chance in different circumstances. There is NO difference between them." Gabrielle rolled her eyes, ‘He must have read my scrolls or maybe Joxer explained it to him.’ "Callisto never tried to find peace, not until it was too late. Eve is. Give her the chance she needs to prove herself." "Never! I saw the look of enjoyment on her face as she killed my father. I can not forgive her, nor will I give her the chance she needs to crush us all," he said. Figuring that this was going to take some time, she temporally gave up, "I’m going to go wake Xena up. We’ll talk again later." He sighed harshly, "Whatever." With one last look at him, she left the room. ‘This is going to take some time.’ Gabrielle was on her way to Xena’s room, when she noticed that Eve’s door was open. It seemed as if she and Ares were talking. Even though she knew that nothing was going on, she stayed and eavesdropped on their little conversation. "What do you want Ares? You aren’t welcomed here." Gabrielle could hear the hatred in her voice. "Listen Eve, just hear me out. Give me five minutes, then you won’t have to put up with me." ‘Sounds reasonable,’ Gabrielle thought and Eve seemed to agree, "Alright, then, talk." "First, let me see if I’ve got the straight. you want to change, but you believe that there is no redemption for the Champion of Rome. Am I correct?" She nodded. "You’re mother used to be just like you, except she was a better fighter, knew more about tactics and strategies and focused on the matter at hand. All together she was in deeper than could have ever been. She could use anyone and everyone to get what she wanted and she wanted everything." "what’s your point?" He sighed, ‘You’re mother was able to change and leave it all behind. Why can’t you?" She stared blankly, "You should know why, you taught me everything I know." ‘Wrong answer,’ he thought, "I taught your mother as well. I want an answer, Why can’t you change?" She focused for a minute, "I’m not strong enough. My mother had will power, I don’t," she stated. "But, you have people that care about you and who want to help you. You don’t have to do this alone." She sighed, "Who’s going to help me? Who could ever forgive me?" She questioned. "Xena wants to help, so does Gabrielle and believe it or not, so do I," he said. Eve stood frozen, ‘He’s right.’ Gabrielle smiled, ‘By the gods, he got through to her. Amazing,’ she thought, ‘Better go tell Xena what’s going on.’ Gabrielle smiled as she entered Xena’s room, "Duck Gabby," she was warned as Xena flipped towards her. "Nice one Xena. I talked to Virgil." Without interrupting her workout, Xena replied, "And." "And, I didn’t get very far. He is full of such anger towards her. I tried to reason with him, but I believe it’s going to take some time for us to convince him. And I’m going to need Eve’s help, she needs to prove herself to him." Xena nodded and sat down, "We need to help Eve then, get her to believe in herself." Just then they heard, "I think I’ve gotten us a step closer to that." They turned to see Ares standing in the doorway, Xena smiled and Gabrielle just nodded. "Well," Xena said expectantly. "Well, I’ve decided that with the help of my family and friends, I can change and turn away from my past," Eve said from behind him. Xena smiled and hugged her daughter, "He’s a good man, keep him mom," she said quietly. Xena smiled, "I will, but we have to get Virgil first." Eve nodded and they separated, Eve turned to Gabrielle and hugged her as well. "Let’s go eat breakfast," she suggested. Everyone nodded and headed down the stairs towards the kitchen. Virgil was already there and in a none-too-pleasant mood. They all exchanged glances then sat down, Eve trying to stay as far from him as possible. Xena smiled at her daughter, then addressed Meg, "Don’t you think it would be a delightful thing for our children to be wed?" Virgil went red and Eve went white in shock. Meg on the other hand was thrilled, "What an idea! That sure would make Joxer proud! Just to know that his son was able to put hatred behind and move on, forgive and forget, that was his motto." Virgil looked mad, "You are all insane!" At that he shoved his chair away and stalked off to his room. "That went well," Xena said, getting evil glares from everyone, "I’ve seen worse!" "You know Xena, that is a good idea. I wasn’t acting there," Meg said. "Nor was I. I wouldn’t mind having grandchildren." Ares and Gabrielle were starring in shock, but Eve looked thoughtful, "I want a family of my own. A loving husband, children," she confessed, "And Virgil is quite nice, just not to me, he hates me. He’s very handsome though." Meg and Xena shared a smile, what an idea.


	4. Chapter 4

Xena and Ares were sitting in her room, trying to figure out what to do next. "Cupid’s still alive, we could always have him hit Virgil with an arrow," he suggested. She looked doubtful, "Oh yeah, then he would be like Draco. Not a good idea." He nodded, "True. If only we could get him to see who she is." "That’s what Gabrielle is trying to do. Oh well, it’s going to take time, might as well find something that’s going to go somewhere," Xena suggested. Ares smiled, "Like us? I mean the us part of you and me." She smiled, "Yes us. There hasn’t been an us for awhile, quite awhile." He looked at her, "Do you want there to be an us?" She looked shocked, but knew why he questioned this, "Ares, I have always loved you. I was just blinded by hatred, not really for you, but for who I was. I thought that if I were to love you, then it would mean that I would end up as who I used to be. And I could never live with that. But I know now that I can’t live without you." He had never heard anything that pure spoken to him before, "We will be together forever. A family, children, a home, whatever you want, my princess." She smiled, "I love you." That was the first time she had said that sense before Borias. He was shocked, "I love you too Xe." She beamed at him, it felt so good to hear him call her Xe again. They embraced fiercely and didn’t separate for a long time. As they did, Xena did something that neither of them really expected, she let her passion overcome her. Kissing him, she pushed him onto his back and worshipped him in kisses fiercely. Wanting to know what Xena’s plan was, Gabrielle went to her friend’s bedroom. Walking in she said, "Hey Xena, what are we going to do about..Oh by the gods! Sorry, leaving. Didn’t mean to interrupt that." She quickly walked out of the room and shut the door, "Way too much information. I really didn’t need to see all that!" "See all what?" Eve asked, coming towards her mother’s door. "Don’t go in there Eve," Gabrielle instructed. At the questioning look from the girl, she said, "They are getting comfortable with each other." Eve nodded, she understood that well enough, "I’m going to go talk to Virgil and Meg said that she could use some help in the kitchen." Gabrielle nodded and headed towards the kitchen , while Eve went towards Virgil’s room. Bracing herself, Eve knocked on the door. "I don’t care who it is, go away!" She tried the door and realized that it was unlocked, with a bit of boldness, she walked into the room. He turned, "You," there was such hatred in his voice. "Please listen to me. Virgil, please." She was desperate, she wanted this to end, she even let that show in her eyes, weakness. He stared at her, "Talk," he ordered. She smiled and sat on the bed next to him. He looked irritated, but said nothing. "Virgil, I am so incredibly sorry for what I’ve done to you. No one deserves for anything like this to ever happen to them. I took your father away from you and for that I will be eternally sorry for, but please, can’t we leave this behind us and start over?" His eyes flashed, but he seemed to actually believe her. Then he struck, pinning her to the bed, she struggled but couldn’t escape. There was a deep hateful glow in his eyes, "Why should I believe you?" She was still now and very confused, she hadn’t expected anything like this to happen. Slowly she leaned up towards him, hopping that this would work and he wouldn’t move away. "You could kill me you know, right here, right now. I’m helpless, wouldn’t take much, a flick of the wrist basically." All this time she had been moving closer and closer to him, their lips were centimeters apart. She smiled and caught his lips with hers. At first, he didn’t respond, but after her coaxing, he did. ‘I think I’ve got him,’ she thought. "More than you know," a voice said from behind her. She recognized it and heard the person leave as well, it had been Dite’. Virgil separated from her, noticing that she was the one on top of him now, "You could have killed me, why didn’t you?" He questioned. She smiled down at him, then rested her head on his chest, "I told you, I’m not interested in killing you or anyone else. All I really want now is a peaceful family life and forgiveness." She didn’t think he’d ever trust her, but it seemed that he was suddenly. He shifted and she sat up, he stared into her eyes, all he could see was how deeply sorry she was and love staring back at him. He smiled and stroked her cheek, she almost melted at his touch, closing her eyes and smiling at him. "I forgive you," he stated quietly. She beamed at him, a smile like her mothers in every detail. He gently grabbed her shoulders and pulled her down to him to kiss her lips again. She gladly followed his lead and returned the kiss.


	5. Chapter 5

Xena and Ares emerged from her room, hand in hand, smiling. Figuring that everyone was probably in the kitchen, they headed there. Meg and Gabrielle were there ,but there was no sign of Eve or Virgil. "Gabrielle where’s Eve?" Xena asked, she was only a little worried. Her daughter could take care of herself, but it was a mother’s nature to worry. Ares squeezed her hand, then slipped his arm around her waist, "Don’t worry about her, she’s fine, I’m sure." Gabrielle turned away from Meg and smiled, "Oh so, you two are done with your little game. Well, Eve went to talk to Virgil, but that was an hour ago, I haven’t seen her sense." Xena didn’t look very comfortable with that. "I was about to go check with Virgil to see if she was there," Gabrielle confessed. "I’ll go," Xena said. "No, let me. You and Gabby need to talk Xe. Anyways I’d kinda like to tell Eve that she has a father." Xena smiled, then looked at Gabrielle who was in shock. "You two are getting married?" She had already figured that they were, judging by the actions she had seen earlier that day, but now finding out for sure was breath taking to say the least. Xena smiled, "Yes, we’re going to go to Amphipolis and live there, although I believe we’ll end up travelling around more than staying home." "I’ll be right back," Ares said, kissing her hand. She smiled. Ares didn’t hear anything from outside the door and that worried him. If Eve was in there, they would probably be fighting or at least arguing, but he heard nothing. He had an instinct to protect her, so he barged into the room and what met his eyes, shocked him more than anything. There on Virgil’s bed, lay him and Eve, both sound asleep. He sighed, "At least they’re dressed and not killing each other." He smiled evilly, "Get up kids! NOW!" He yelled. Eve jumped and Virgil went to protect her, but both relaxed when they saw Ares. "Hi," Eve said. "Hello Eve, Virgil. Now would someone want to tell me what in Tartarus is going on here?" Eve and Virgil shared a look, then he spook, "I forgave her, we’re moving on. But don’t worry, nothing happened, honest, nothing." Ares smiled, "I know, I just wanted to act like an over-protective father for a minute. Eve, your mother and I are getting married." She smiled brightly, "Great. I’d like to say so are we, but we’ve decided to take it slow for awhile, just to make sure everything’s going to work out." He nodded, "Good. Now, I believe your mother would like to know of this, so let’s go tell her, not to mention Meg and Gabrielle." She nodded and reached for Virgil’s hand, then the three left the room. Xena smiled as she saw her daughter enter the room and her smile grew as she saw Virgil holding her hand. "Oh my! What’s going on here?" She questioned. Meg turned and grinned, "We, uh, made up," Virgil said. Xena raised an eyebrow, "It’s okay," Ares reassured her. She smiled, "So, did he tell you the news?" Eve smiled, "Looks like I’m gonna have a dad. Who knows, maybe a lil brother or sister some day soon." Xena laughed, "Yeah, maybe." Ares looked interested and came to sit by her. "So, what’s going on between you two?" Meg asked, interested now. "We’re dating for now, nothing more and not a bit less," Eve said, leaning back on Virgil who wrapped his arms around her. Gabrielle looked a little confused, "What changed your mind?" She asked Virgil. He shrugged, "She was at her most vulnerable time, yet all I could see in her eyes were a deep apology and love. It showed me that she had changed, no one’s eyes could lie and look the pure. The kiss might have had a bit to do with it, not much though. Just proved to me that she trusted me not to hurt her, though I could have." Gabrielle smiled, "Amazing, that’s all it took, wow." Xena was smiling also, "Well, this is great news. Meg close the Inn, we’re going to celebrate!" The older woman smiled broadly, now that was something that she still loved to do, party. And that’s how the rest of the night was spent, partying and dancing. Everyone was happy and remand that away for a very long time.   
  


The End


End file.
